Fyggs and Phantoms
by Sage of Winds
Summary: After falling from the roof of the Observatory, the Celestrian apprentice Kamilah is plagued by problems in the Protectorate. As she travels far and wide, she begins to realize that her role in this journey is far bigger than it seems. DragonQuest IX/DQ 9 Novelization. ドラゴンクウェスト IX/ドラゴンクウェスト 9,
1. Part One:Plummet:Chapter 1

Alone in her quiet,undisturbed corner, Kamilah closed her eyes and leaned back in her chair, trying to ignore the multi-pitched blur of voices in the Quester's Rest.

For The Almighty's sake! _Why_ were mortals so _noisy_? They constantly chatted and chirped like a bunch of crazed magpies with an attention problems. Not unlike the Celestrian youngsters.

Ah, the Observatory. A small smile appeared on Kamilah's face as she recalled her bittersweet memories. She remembered how she and her friends Jessica and Samuel were the life of that place; always jumping around and singing their hearts out. Now, ever since she had fallen from the roof where Yggdrasil stood, all that uncontrollable delirium seemed to slowly ebb away. How she longed to be back home. . . The Celestrian found herself dozing off.

She felt something nudge the palm of her hand."Hey, Kamilah! Don't go to sleep in a room full of drunks, okay? That's a really bad idea. Hey, wake up!"

The girl snapped open her eyes, seeing her wolf Counterpart staring back up at her with wide orchid eyes.

"Sorry Abigail," Kamilah reached down and gently stroked the wolf in between the ears. All Celestrian had animal partners that were called Counterparts. They are born right alongside their Celestrian's birth, and vanish into stardust at the same time their Companion dies. They assisted their Celestrian in many ways, such as watching over their assigned Village while their Companion sleeps.

Abigail was a good friend. She always stayed by the girl's side and gave her some advice, but there was just one problem with lugging around a talking wolf: She. . . well,talked. This was a problem because apparently mortals think that talking wolves are weird.(Come to think of it, there weren't any talking animals in the Protectarate.[Or at least, she hadn't seen any yet.])

Kamilah had to tell Abigail to keep quiet around mortals after the incident with King Schott. Almighty help them, that was more terrifying than the time Aquila had ordered her to fly sixty laps around the Observatory as punishment for teasing him about hid "little crush" on Columba.

It happened after the King explained the situation with the Wight Knight terrorizing the village and demanding for Princess Simona to be delivered at Loch Ness.

"What a bastard," Abigail sighed to herself, shaking her head. Then, King Schott just stared at her for what seemed like an eternity until Kamilah butted in, gave a painfully forced chuckle, and told him that she was practicing her ventriloquism.

Thus the sad tale of why Abigail must hold her tongue. Truthfully, getting the wolf to shut up wasn't a problem; getting her to talk was an impossible feat that no one, not even stern Aquila, could accomplish. She would always nod, shake her head, roll her eyes, or shrug her shoulders. It was kind of a miracle Abigail knew how to talk at all.

"Kamilah! Fancy seein' ya here!"

A cheerful voice came from the middle of the room. The two looked up to see Patty walking toward them with a huge platter held over her head. The woman gave Kamilah a glass of water (For the Celestrian absolutely despised beer after the incident with Tymothy, Aquila's Counterpart. But that is a whole entire new story. . .) and Abigail a quick pat on the head. "There's my favorite lil' life-savin' pooch, eh?" She laughed. The Counterpart whined and cutely nuzzled the palm of her hand .

"So whataya' doin' here, sittin' 'n a lonely corner all by urself?" Patty told Kamilah. "Don't ya have some flirtin' to do?" The woman asked, flashing her a cheeky smile.

Kamilah gazed at the water distantly before exchanging glances with Abigail, then shrugged. "I don't flirt." She simply said.

Patty's smile faded. "Oh." Then she padded over to a nearby table and dragged over a chair and sat herself down. "Well, 'least let me sit 'ere. No 'un's gonna sit alone in _my_ Inn." After a while her smile returned. "Ya' sure ya' don't wanna flirt? There's some fine-lookin boys sittin' there." She jerked a thumb over her shoulder to a group of young men Kamilah's age sitting at a table behind them. Patty was right. They were quite handsome―

No! No, no no. She was _not _getting tangled up into mortal life. If Aquila was watching her, her fate would be worse than flying through Gleeba's fierce gales."Yes, I'm positive."

Patty shrugged."Oh well. Ya' know, when I was 'ur age, I firted with at least thirty boyza day. No kiddin'."

_Those poor, __poor__ boys. . . _"To tell you the truth, Patty," Kamilah sat up, (proud that she was finally saying something more than three word sentences today.) "I don't have time to flirt with boys. I have other things on my mind ."

The woman raised an eyebrow."Hm? Like what?"

"For one, I need to find people willing to help me fight the Wight Knight―"she instantly wished she could her take her words back. She hated admitting helplessness. "I mean―uh. . . just ignore that!"

"Ya' need people?" Patty's voice began to raise her voice. Several people nearby turned their heads.

_Patty, shut up! Shut up! _"No, of course not. I'm perfectly fine on my own. Just a slip of the tongue―" The owner didn't stop to listen. She suddenly pounced up onto the table and yowled at the top of her lungs.

"Hey! Gal's and guys! Kamiles here's needs someun' brave and 'elp 'er fight the Wight Knight!"

Everyone, even the drunks(who had been there since the crack of dawn) looked up to see who dared to challenge the mighty bastard. _Oh, Almighty save me._

Patty jumped up and down, waving her arms in the air while doing so. "Come on! Any volunteers? Anyone'll do now! Don't be a bunch 'o cowards!" Then, with a smug smile, she leaped down and ran over to the counter where she usually was.

For a moment, there was a pressuring silence as the Celestrian and the mortals stared at each other. Abigail, trying to look like a "normal" wolf, began to scratch her ear intently with a hind leg.

Then, from the back of the room a voice rang. "Girl, this true? You really going to fight that man?"

Kamilah exchanged glances with Abigail once again. The she-wolf gave her a nod of approval. "Go ahead," she whispered softly.

Taking a deep breath, the Celestrian answered."Yes. I am."

Laughter exploded in the room. The noise of mortal's voices was no longer a multi-pitched blur. Instead, it was an organized chorus of cruel interlacing pitches, set with a rubato tempo. Kamilah's morale was instantly crushed, and Abigail visibly winced. Warm tears of hurt rose to her eyes but she fought fiercely to hold them back.

Suddenly, a voice from the center of the room stopped the sadistic chorus of laughter as if it had swiftly shaken a baton, commanding them to stop.

"I don't think she's crazy."

The room fell silent once more. Kamilah looked in the direction of the voice and saw a young man stand up from his table, recognizing it as the one Patty had pointed to earlier. She couldn't believe that she had thought they were handsome heartbeats ago.

The boys looked at the one standing with wide eyes. "Jayden have you gone hooting mad!"

Jayden ignored them and walked toward her. As he edged nearer, Kamilah could see his features more clearly. He was handsome. Very handsome, in her opinion. He made the other boys at the table seem like nothing. His steps were soft, but she could hear the gentle tempo they were making. The symphony of the room was temporarily put into a period of rest.

When he reached her, he smiled gently."My name is Jayden. May I have the privilege of knowing your name?" His deep peridot green gaze was intently fixed on Kamilah's turquoise blue eyes.

"Kamilah," she replied. Finally she tore her eyes away from his gaze and focused onto a table leg not too far away. Although she wasn't looking at him, she could _feel _Jayden's burning gaze on her. Her heart began to race. Summoning all the courage she had, she risked a peek into his eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

Almost immediately she felt her face become warm. Looking up at Jayden, she could see that he was blushing too. Trying to hide it, he cleared his throat and turned to the crowd.

"I don't think she is crazy," He repeated. "As a matter of fact, she's very brave. Braver that all you cowardly dicks who just sit here doing nothing." He held out his hand. "Kamile, I'll help you. I'm not going to lie around while you're out there risking your life. Well, with your permission of course."

The Celestrian stared at him for a while before reaching out and shaking his hand."Welcome to the Party."

He gave her a sheepish grin, the grin that all boys know that all girls can't resist.

The period of rest was over. The chorus of voices started up again. Everyone began mumbling to themselves at once, turning the once organized choir into a jumble of incomprehensible words.

"Hey, Kamilah," someone from behind them called out. "Can I come along too? I don't wanna be part of the 'cowardly dicks'."

The Counterpart, boy, and Celestrian turned to see a girl, her single blonde braid bouncing as she walked toward them. Unlike Jayden, she seemed to have a cheerful, bright aura. Kamilah sensed that as soon as she walked up to them.

"Name's Ciela!" She chirped. Her unusual amber eyes sparkled as she spoke.

"Why hello,"The Celestrian couldn't help but smile."You can come if you want to. I won't force you."

"Yay!" She jumped in the air and gave an energetic air punch.

Subsequently, without any warning, the door to the Pub suddenly came off its hinges and crashed onto the floor. In shock, Kamilah turned to the direction of the entrance and saw a boy lying spread-eagle on the door as if it were his troublesome bed. With snaky legs, he stood up only to collapse. Then, gritting his teeth, he got up again.

Kamilah withdrew a gasp. The boy's right thigh had a large, deep cut gouged into his flesh. No wonder he couldn't stand.

But if the boy really was in agony, he didn't show any signs of it. He stared at the customers who were blinking in surprise back at him.

Patty finally got over her shock. With a loud _ahem_, she barked, "Hey, kid! Ya' owe me a new door. Ya' hear?"

He opened his mouth to protest, but before his vocal folds even managed to vibrate, he was sent crashing down again.

It was a castle guard. Kamilah recognized it as the one who had asked her what her business was at the gates.

"Ah Damion, you little thief!" He growled, forcefully making the boy stand. "At last, I have you in my grasp. You shan't escape justice this time, my friend."

The boy's warm brown eyes grew wide with pure fear and began to wrestle weakly with the guard holding him. "No!"

"Hmph. Cease the struggling. It's off to the gallows with you."

"Wait!" Kamilah was surprised to see that it was Ciela who had spoken. She was even more surprised to see her run toward the boy with her arms outstretched.

"Brother!"She cried happily, tightly embracing Damion. He blushed furiously.

"Oh brother Damion, I've missed you so much!" Then, with round, cute, innocent puppy eyes. She looked up at the guard holding her "brother."

"Has my big brother been causing trouble again? Sir?"

Kamilah raised an eyebrow and exchanged glances with Jayden.

The man looked away and scratched the back his neck.

"Well, miss. . .he's stolen gold coins and a few pieces of jewelry here and there. . ."

Ciela looked back down at Damion and gently cuffed his ear. "Silly, didn't I tell you that you didn't need money and wealth to impress me."

Damion was still a deep shade of crimson. "Y-Yeah. _Little sister_(that part was rather forced.) Stupid, p-pathetic me."

Ciela turned to the guard. "Can you please let him go?" Her amber puppy eyes grew to the size of Gleeban Gold Pieces. "Please?"

The guard cringed. His mind was screaming at him to grab the boy and throw him into the nearest jail cell, while his heart was begging him to be reunited with his poor sister. The two sides began to battle fiercely, but the girl's pleading look didn't make it any easier for him. Eventually the guard felt so crummy inside he let the boy go. Then he turned to the crowd.

"I am very sorry to disturb you all. May the Almighty bless you with a good day." Then with a quick bow, he left.

Ciela waited until he was a good distance away. Then she urged Damion to his feet, and subsequently, to walk. He was so shaky he looked like an awkward camel on two legs.

She led him to where Kamilah was standing with Jayden. "Can we take him too?"

The chorus of the room was no longer on stage. They had all walked off the risers and went to their own conversations.

Kamilah exchanged glances with Abigail and then with Jayden once more. "Well, if its alright with you guys. . ."

Jayden paused for a while, then chuckled. "Sure, I'm alright with it. Welcome to the party, 'big brother.'"

Damion just scowled at him.

Jayden unwaveringly glared back with equal menace.

Kamilah sensed a deep, dangerous rivalry brewing between the two boys. From her previous experiences at the Observatory, she knew that rivalries between boys could get deadly very quickly.

Forcing a smile, she stepped in between them. "Hey guys, why don't we get a room and rest for the night, eh?" She turned to the counter. "Patty!"

The woman nonchalantly raised an eyebrow in response.

"Can we get a room?"  
>She nodded. "Sure thing honey. But I'm not the one who does the roomin'. It's Erin there. That gal's in charge of that."<p>

Erin looked up at the mention of her name. "Huh?"

"Erin!" Kamilah waved her arms to get the innkeeper's attention. "Can we get a room? One that will hold four people?"

The girl smiled. "Of course. With your Special Staff rate, your total will be 12 gold coins."

Kamilah winced mentally. She wasn't exactly overflowing with money. Although she was no mathematician, it was obvious that 12 out of 24 gold coins was a critical hit to her savings.

Nevertheless, she split her money and placed half of it in her pocket, while she tossed the bag with the other half to Erin.

The young girl caught it expertly and counted the coins inside before nodding. "Your room is 25. Here's your key." Erin hurled it across the room where the Celestrian caught it swiftly. "Please enjoy your stay!"

The Celestrian turned to her Party. She was quit shocked to see that Jayden and Damion were still glowering at each other. Damion's brown gaze seemed to smolder. Ciela's eyes darted back and forth between them. When she saw Kamilah watching, she leaned toward her and whispered, "I think that their pupils are getting larger. When tom cats get in a quarrel, their eyes do the same, I've seen it before,"

A catfight between the boys in the middle of the Pub? _That_ did not seem like a brilliant thing to endure.

_I better break this up right now. . ._

"Hey snap out of it!" Kamilah grabbed the glass of water on her table and hurled the liquid at Jayden, who coughed (and finally) blinked.

Damion had the laugh this time. Jayden growled at him and started glaring again.

"No." Kamilah simply said. She grabbed Damion's shoulders and shook them rather harshly, then glanced back at Jayden. "No," she reiterated. When she spoke again, each of her words were slow and drawn out. "You are not going to have another staring contest. I forbid you, Ciela forbids you, Time forbids you, and Heavens, the Almighty forbids you. Now it's late. I'm tired. I want to go to sleep. Understood?"

The boys bobbed their heads meekly.

"Good. Our room is 25. Follow me."

But strangely, those two words were to be said many more times on this incredible journey; in times of absolute peril, in times of great adventure, and finally, in times like these. Those two words are what established Kamilah as the leader of this group. And to think, their entire journey started with just those two words. Two little words. Yet, they hold so much power.

_Follow me._

Author's Afterwords: I seriously doubt that anyone reads this, but I got the second chapter up. . .after some time. Sorry about that; I made the transition from Middle to High School, and ever since I have been bombarded with homework, especially form my English Accelerated class. I know what you're thinking:_Whoa, Buizelstar's a freshman in high school! _But yes, I am. All my English teachers love my work― from essays to stories. For my mythology project, I rewrote and made a storybook on _Orpheus and Eurydice_ and the teacher fell in love with it. Ms. LeMon(my English teacher) might have even shown it off to other classes. I don't think that everyone supports the idea of CelestrianXOC. Too bad DQIX didn't have any official characters like in Zelda, (Zelink4ever, btw.) because now I have to make characters up. Speaking of Zelda, it was their 25th Anniversary last year, hence the Room 25. I've been a HUGE Zelda fan since I was eight, and I don't think this is a phase that I am going to grow out of. DQIX was actually my first game of the series, and now I'm obsessed and can join the cult of DQ loving Japanese. Oh, I'm half Japanese. . .in case you were wondering. Alright. I'm blabbering, so I'll disappear now. This is Buizelstar, signing off. ¡Tengas un bien dia!

**5/26/12-Message Update: 'ey everyone! Buizelstar here. After all the supportive and inspirational comments that I got from my reviewers, I have decided to keep on continuing this fic. When I first started this, I wasn't expecting so many fans. I now have at least six followers, and to me, that's pretty darn good for only two chapters. As far as the storyline, I won't cover the entire thing; just the basics or the most important parts of the games. I mean if I covered the entire thing. . .phew! Imagine how long this fic would be. Sorry to those who opened this seeing that it was updated only to discover that it was just a comment thing. To bad FF doesn't allow us to post author's comments like on DeviantART. It would make things so much easier. Anyway, to top things off, I will update with an actual chapter next time, which will probably be somewhere in the summer.*readers collectively gasp* I KNOW! An actual chapter! Stay in tuned! Y como galletas. Es muy bien para tu salud.**


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